Tithing for Profit

Tithing is an interesting concept. To many, especially devout Christians, it's a form of charitable activity that involves donating 10% of your income to help others. To mediaeval history buffs, it's a noun for a group of 10 men who were collectively financially and morally responsible for each others' actions.

I'd like to propose a new definition.

Many join Kleeneze, Avon, etc. because they need extra income to pay off debts, to pay bills, or to buy essentials for themselves or their family. They assume that their retail profit is equal to ready cash, that they can spend that money in perpetuity without reinvesting in their business. They then get upset when catalogues are not returned, or become unusable over time due to weather, wear and tear, etc. If they get upset enough, they are liable to decide not to carry on, which wastes not only their previous effort, but also wastes the time that their sponsor has invested in them.

That's where the concept of tithing comes in.

If you are running your own Kleeneze (or similar) business because you have an urgent and immediate need for regular cash, stop how you are treating that retail profit and change to this method:

Every week, when you've paid in what you owe to Kleeneze for the goods ordered and sold, take 10% of your retail profit, rounded up to the nearest pound, and stick it in a jar.

In other words, if your retail profit for a week's orders and sales is £61.26, your tithe would be £6.21. Round that up to £7 and put it somewhere safe. Remember, you still have £54.26 to spend on your own needs.

That £7 is your seed money towards reinvesting in your retail business. In 5 weeks, you could pay for a new set of catalogues to replace any which are lost or worn out. In 1 week, you could buy new bags for your catalogues, new carrier bags for your customers' orders or a branded hat/polo shirt.

When you're building your business, you should be tithing for profit.

Invest your retail profits in your business, invest your bonuses in your lifestyle. That way, you have two stories to tell, rather than one.